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Presidency faults contractor over Benin-Agbor-Asaba road failure
The presidency has faulted the contractor handling the Benin-Agbor-Asaba road project, over the current condition of the highway.
This was disclosed on Wednesday by the special adviser to the president on media and public communications, Sunday Dare, during an interview on Channels Television.
Dare noted that the condition of the road should not be used to assess the state of road projects across the country.
“I think that first, these are isolated cases. And we all know by the nature of road construction, during rainy season, you encounter problems like this.
“Whatever played out yesterday, we had all the stakeholders there. And it’s important that even the contractor came out, even though he gave excuses, it showed a failure on their part,” Dare stated.
Nigeria’s minister of works, David Umahi, had on Tuesday inspected the Benin-Agbor-Asaba road project in Edo State, taking responsibility for the state of the highway, while condemning the concessionaire in charge of the road project.
The minister who stated that palliative measures would not be sufficient, said a total reconstruction of the road was necessary.
In a press statement on Tuesday issued by his media aide, Francis Nwaze, Umahi said Tinubu directed the ministry to take immediate action.
“President Tinubu has directed the Federal Ministry of Works to urgently intervene and ensure that necessary corrective actions are taken to restore movement on the affected roads as quickly as possible,” the statement read.
The intervention comes after days of severe gridlock along the corridor, as a result of failed sections of the highway, bringing movement along the interstate route to a near standstill.
Dare said government has the responsibility of identifying roads that need fixing, noting that the minister’s intervention was a testament to government’s response to infrastructural challenges.
“Government has a responsibility to identify the roads that need to be fixed. Government has a responsibility to provide the funding. And then, the next responsibility goes to the contractors to do what is necessary.
“What we saw yesterday, the minister, the National Assembly members, and other key stakeholders going there in record time, right on the spot. And I think that’s what good governance is about, responding as quickly and as swiftly as possible, putting the blame where it is, and requesting for immediate action,” Dare noted.
He stressed that the Benin-Asaba incident was an isolated incident.
“I said these are isolated, but we have quite a number of other roads where there are no complaints, where the roads have been fixed,” he said.
He solicited patience from motorists while construction work progresses across the country, noting that road projects were often constructed in sections.
“It’s like a house construction; a house is not built in a day, it’s progressive. Until the roof comes on, the rain will still pour down on the building,” he said.
Dare said five legacy roads and about 320 roads were currently being undertaken by the federal government nationwide.
“Is President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on top of what’s happening? Absolutely. We’re talking about 5 legacy roads; we’re talking about 320 roads across the length and breadth of our country,” he stated.
